Blade sharpening device

ABSTRACT

The present invention provides a blade sharpening device designed for sharpening a blade for a uniform sharpening of the edge thereof. Generally, the blade sharpening device includes a base, a guide, a carriage, and a blade holder. The base has a guide movable relative to the base. In one embodiment, the base includes a material that receives an impression of a blade defining a blade contour. A blade holder is attached to the base for securing the blade while being sharpened. The carriage includes a means for interacting with the material of the guide or the carriage to define a sharpening path substantially aligning with the blade contour. The carriage has an abrasive surface for sharpening the blade. In operation, the guide and carriage direct the movement of the abrasive surface along the contour of the blade for a uniform sharpening of the edge thereof.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATION

This application is related to and claims priority from earlier filed U.S. provisional patent application Ser. No. 61/178,534, filed May 15, 2009.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

The present invention generally relates to blade or knife sharpening devices. More specifically, the present invention relates to a blade sharpening device that can sharpen blades to provide a consistent and uniform angle along the edge of the blade.

In the industry, it is well known to sharpen blades using a blade sharpening device. Several industries and persons require a sharp blade in their business operations: knife sharpeners, chefs, knife retailers, military, knife manufacturers, restaurants, knife distributors, hardware retailers, cutlery retailers, hardware wholesalers, cutlery wholesalers, agriculture, knife collecting clubs, landscapers, farmers/harvesters, hunters, lawn mower retailers, fishermen, outdoor products distributors, woodworkers, handymen, law enforcement, police, campers, tool retailers, house painters, automotive painting, carpet Installers, upholstery, linoleum installers, winery (pruning), and gardeners.

In order to sharpen a blade, the following issues must be addressed: the angle of the grinding medium to the edge of the blade, the path that the grinding medium follows, consistency of the above two factors throughout the sharpening course, the shape of the grinding medium, and the temperature of the blade during sharpening.

One method of blade sharpening involves using a grinding medium and the skill of the user. The main purpose of the grinding medium is to use something harder than the metal of the blade and grind the blade against it, manually, with little assistance to the user in controlling the angle of the blade. This grinding medium typically consists of grinding stones made of diamond, silicon carbide, aluminum oxide, soft and hard Arkansas, ceramic, and Japanese water stones.

The drawback to using a grinding medium without further assistance is the skill required by the user is an art that is difficult to obtain for ordinary users of the grinding medium. It can produce excellent results provided that the user has the proper know-how and proper coordination. Attempting to sharpen a blade without the proper technique can result in permanent damage of the blade. Sharpening by hand is not for the amateur and it is best when performed by professional knife sharpeners.

Another drawback to this method of sharpening is the time and effort involved in sharpening blades. The user must grind the blade against the stone several times in order to “raise a burr”, the sign that a side of the edge is sharpened. The same procedure must be done on the other side of the blade. Using stones of different grits multiplies the process by several times. Typically, at least two grits of stone and a honing/polishing must be used to properly sharpen a dull blade. This process requires at least 10-20 minutes per blade.

Other methods of blade sharpening address how to maintain a proper angle of the blade against the grinding medium. This category includes several types of devices such as guides, rod guides, crock sticks, slot gadgets, slide sharp, Skarb® system, and warthog system. Each of these devices will be described in further detail below.

Guides, such as the Buck Hone Master® and Razor® edge, assist the user in maintaining the proper angle of the blade to the grinding medium. The drawbacks are that the guides do not make use of the entire stone, the guide degrades during the sharpening process, and the path of the blade is still directed by the user which requires sufficient skill. In addition, it has many of the drawbacks discussed in the grinding medium above.

Rod-guided systems, such as Lansky®, GATCO®, Edge Pro Apex®, and DMT® systems, assist the user to maintain the angle of the blade to the grinding medium. More specifically, it is optimal for use of smaller sized blades. However, it has similar drawbacks featured in the guides and the grinding medium above.

Crock sticks, such as the Spyderco® system, Lansky® system, and Warthog® system, are another type of rod-guided system. With this system, the rods are held in a “V” at a predetermined angle and the blade is brought down against them in a slicing motion. It is another manual sharpening system and the user can make deviations from the set angle by tilting the blade. The drawback to this system is the rods are in a predetermined angle that the user will find difficult to adjust. It also has all the drawbacks of the previously mentioned rod-guided systems.

Slot gadgets, such as the Meyerco Sharpen-It System® and the Normark® sharpener, assist the user to maintain the angle of the blade relative to the grinding medium. With the slot gadgets, the user draws the blade through a slot a few times and this motion sharpens the blade. The drawback of these gadgets is that sometimes they damage the blade. When the slot gadget utilizes wheels, the blade changes shape over time. In addition, the overall quality of the sharpened blade is low.

The Skarb® system is a guide holding the blade in place while this system pivots on a vertical rod. It is a variation on the rod guided systems with low quality results since the angle is not kept the same throughout the blade (from 17 up to 30 degrees to the tip). Also, the Slide® sharp from CRKT® is another variation of the rod guided system having similar problems as the Skarb® (holding the angle throughout the blade).

Another method of sharpening blades involves the usage of power sharpeners. As in manual sharpening, power sharpening can be assisted or unassisted. Unassisted power sharpening involves, for example, two electric sharpeners—a belt sander and a bench grinder. With these electric sharpeners, the user passes the blade against the stone or the belt a few times to sharpen it. Sharpening blades with these two machines requires experience and skill. The belt sander or the stones are aggressive grinding mediums that can damage a blade in an unskilled user.

Assisted power sharpening is popular among both amateurs and professionals alike. The grinding medium is still a stone or a sand paper but the machines are outfitted with several guides or jigs to maintain a constant angle of the blade and guide the user for the proper sharpening. Two examples of assisted power sharpening are the Makita® and the Delta® with guides that help the user to adjust and keep the desired angle of the blade to the grinding medium.

Another two examples of assisted power sharpening are the Edge Craft's Chef® and the Fire Stone® from McGowan®. In this case, both machines use diamond hones for sharpening but the difference from the Makita® and the Delta® is that they have a guide that holds the blade in place so that the user does not wobble the blade during sharpening. They both have predetermined angles and three sets of wheels, two for sharpening and one for polishing/honing. The user makes a few passes from one slot to the other up to the polishing stage. These machines sometimes fail to produces a sharp edge on the blade and can scratch the sides of the blade.

On the professional grade, there are several types of sharpening systems. The Friedrich Dick® model, the True Hone® model, the Hook-Eye® belt grinder, and the Chef's Choice® professional are a few examples of some professional grade blade sharpening systems. Not all of them consistently create a razor edge on a blade. The machines are manufactured mainly for the purposes of a professional sharpener. Consequently, these devices still require some a skilled user for operation.

Finally, the Tormek® system uses a wet wheel and several guides and jigs for sharpening knives. It has a fully adjustable angle maker that sets the desired angle. It can grind out nicks or reshape broken tips without overheating the blade. It is an expensive tool designed for professional use. The jigs are sold separately, making it even more expensive.

In the prior art, the user's skill and “feeling” of the sharpening is paramount. The “art” part of the sharpening is still present in all of these prior art blade sharpening devices. The present invention solves the above problems in the prior art which results in a consistent, accurate and controlled process for sharpening with minimal user skill required. More importantly, the present invention directs a sharpening path of along a contour of the blade against an abrasive surface, with minimal user input. The present invention brings professional grade sharpening of the blade to the unskilled user with consist and uniform sharpening of the edge.

BRIEF SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

An embodiment of the present invention preserves the advantages of prior blade sharpening devices. In addition, it provides new advantages not found in currently available blade sharpening devices and overcomes many disadvantages of such currently available blade sharpening devices.

The present invention provides a blade sharpening device designed for sharpening along the contour of the blade for a uniform sharpening of the edge thereof. The blade sharpening includes a base that includes a material that receives an impression of a blade defining a blade contour. A blade holder is attached to the base for securing the blade while being sharpened. A guide is rotatably engaged and movable relative to the base. The guide is connected or engaged with a carriage. The carriage contains a means for interacting with the material of the guide to define a sharpening path substantially aligning with the blade contour. The carriage having an abrasive surface for sharpening the blade. The abrasive surface contacts the blade during the sharpening process to provide a uniform edge along a length of the blade.

In operation, the guide and carriage direct the movement of the abrasive surface along the contour of the blade for a uniform sharpening of the edge thereof as further defined in the following steps. First, the user places the blade of the knife in the blade holder and secures it in place using a fastening member, such as a screw. The user brings the blade to the horizontal plane, based upon its weight, which is measured by a dial on the blade holder. Second, with a stretcher device or manually, the user pulls one or more tracer sheets attached to the base or other materials that can receive an impression towards the carriage and guide and away from the blade holder, so that there is sufficient space for the blade to define a contour within the tracer sheets. Third, the user lowers the blade towards the tracer sheets until the blade holder engages the sheets. Fourth, the stretcher device is released by the user and the sheets copy the shape of the blade contour. Fifth, an aligner resets any sheet into its original position if it does not engage the blade. Sixth, the user locks the tracer sheets in position with a bar member attached to the base using locking members, such as screws. Seventh, the user vertically moves the blade away from the tracer sheets using a height gauge.

Eighth, the user rotates the arm or guide in front of the tracer sheets. Ninth, the user lowers the blade until the blade edge contacts an antenna member positioned on the carriage above the grinding medium or abrasive surface. At this point, the blade edge would be sharpened at 0 degrees. Tenth, an angle setter attached to the blade holder telescopically moves the blade holder away from the grinding medium to a desired sharpening angle for the blade. The further away from the grinding medium the blade moves, the larger the angle of sharpening. Likewise, the closer the blade is to the grinding medium, the smaller the angle of sharpening. Note, the blade is not touching the grinding medium at this point. Eleventh, the user lowers the blade further until it contacts or engages the grinding medium. The user continues to lower the knife until it meets the desired force or pressure of the blade onto the grinding medium. The amount of force or pressure which is applied can be measured by a protracter positioned on the blade holder. The amount of force or pressure will determined an amount of material to be removed, or depth of cut, from the blade during the sharpening of the blade. Twelfth, the user starts sharpening the blade by turning the motor on and sharpens the lower side or first side of the blade. The edge of the blade is sharpened by tracking the carriage along the tracer sheets of the base. By rolling the carriage along the sheets of the base, the blade is sharpened along a defined path similar to the contour of the blade. After a couple of passes of the grinding medium along the blade contour, the lower side of the blade is sharpened. Next, the user then disengages the blade form the sharpening medium by turning the dials on the height gauge and the angle setter correspondingly. Thirteenth, the user lowers the knife to a lower side of the grinding medium to sharpen the upper side of the knife, changes the polarity of the sharpening device, and follows the same process for upper side of the blade.

It is therefore an object of the blade sharpening device to provide consistency in both a contour and an edge of the blade during sharpening.

It is a further object of the blade sharpening device to consistently sharpen along a tangent line of the blade relative to the abrasive surface.

It is a further object of the blade sharpening device to adjust or select a degree or amount of material removed from a blade during sharpening of the blade.

Another object of the blade sharpening device is to select or adjust an angle at which the blade is sharpened.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

The novel features which are characteristic of the blade sharpening device are set forth in the appended claims. However, the blade sharpening device, together with further embodiments and attendant advantages, will be best understood by reference to the following detailed description taken in connection with the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a perspective view of a blade sharpening device of the present invention including a stretcher and aligner;

FIG. 2 is a perspective view of the blade sharpening device in FIG. 1 without a stretcher and aligner;

FIG. 3 is a left side view of the blade sharpening device in FIG. 1;

FIG. 4 is a right side view of the blade sharpening device in FIG. 1;

FIG. 5 is a front view of the blade sharpening device in FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a rear view of the blade sharpening device in FIG. 1;

FIG. 7 is a top view of the blade sharpening device in FIG. 1;

FIG. 8 is a partial perspective view of the blade sharpening device in FIG. 1;

FIG. 9 is a partial left side view of the blade sharpening device in FIG. 1;

FIG. 10 is a partial elevated view of the blade sharpening device in FIG. 1;

FIG. 11 is a schematic drawing illustrating sharpening the blade along the tangent line relative to the blade sharpening device in FIG. 1;

FIG. 12 is a schematic drawing illustrating sharpening the blade along the tangent line relative to the blade sharpening device in FIG. 1;

FIG. 13 is a schematic drawing illustrating sharpening the blade along the tangent line relative to the blade sharpening device in FIG. 1;

FIG. 14 is a schematic drawing illustrating sharpening the blade along the tangent line relative to the blade sharpening device in FIG. 1;

FIG. 15 is a schematic drawing illustrating sharpening the blade along the tangent line relative to the blade sharpening device in FIG. 1;

FIG. 16 is a schematic drawing illustrating sharpening the blade along the tangent line relative to the blade sharpening device in FIG. 1;

FIG. 17 is a sectional side view used in the blade sharpening device in FIG. 1;

FIG. 18 is a sectional view of a level used in the blade sharpening device in FIG. 1;

FIG. 19 is a sectional side view of the blade sharpening device in FIG. 1;

FIG. 20 is a sectional view of the blade sharpening device in FIG. 1;

FIG. 21 is a sectional view of the blade sharpening device in FIG. 1;

FIG. 22 is a sectional view of the blade sharpening device in FIG. 1;

FIG. 23 is a sectional view of the blade sharpening device in FIG. 1;

FIG. 24 is a front view of a blade holder included in the blade sharpening device in FIG. 1;

FIG. 25 is an sectional view of a grinding medium included in the blade sharpening device in FIG. 1;

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

The present invention solves the problems in blade sharpening devices by providing a new and unique construction for consistent and effective sharpening of blades. Generally, the present invention is a blade sharpening device 100 designed for sharpening a blade for a uniform sharpening of the edge thereof. Most importantly, the present invention provides a sharpening path defined by a contour of the blade with minimal user input.

Now referring to FIGS. 1-10, the blade sharpening device 100 is designed for sharpening the blade for a uniform sharpening of the edge thereof. The present invention provides a blade sharpening device 100 designed for sharpening along the contour of the blade for a uniform sharpening of the edge thereof. The blade sharpening device 100 includes a base 110 that includes a material 140, such as tracers, that receive an impression of a blade defining a blade contour. A blade holder 120, using a height gauge, is attached to the base 110 for securing the blade while being sharpened. A guide 130, such as a rotatable arm, is rotatably engaged and movable relative to the base 110. The guide 130 is connected or engaged with a carriage 150. The carriage 150 contains a means for interacting with the material 140 of the base 110, such as bearings, to define a sharpening path substantially aligning with the blade contour. The carriage 150 having an abrasive surface or grinding medium for sharpening the blade. The abrasive surface contacts the blade during the sharpening process to provide a uniform edge along a length of the blade.

Referring to FIGS. 1-25, a blade sharpening device 100 is illustrated. This is the sharpening system that makes sharpening easy and precise. It is fully customizable thus controlling all the factors that govern the sharpening procedure. The path of the edge of the blade, the curvature of the blade and the force which the knife exerts to the grinding medium, all are taken into consideration in its design.

The blade sharpening device 100 is provided below in further detail with emphasis on particular aspects of the invention.

The stretcher 101 consists of a solid rod and a handle. The two pieces are connected with a thick rubber cord. The user places the rod of the stretcher behind the tracer sheets, on the small part of their “L” and pulls them in a direction against the height gauge. Doing so, he frees the space for the blade. He then lowers down the knife with the height gauge until the blade is behind the small part of the “L”. Now, the blade's edge is ready to be copied. The user releases the stretcher and the sheets run back with the force of the rubber band. On their way back, they meet the blade thus copying exactly its shape.

An aligner 102 is a box that has two rollers with their axis vertical to the ground. This device is used to align any tracer sheet that is out of place. In case some of the tracer sheets have not touched the blade of the knife, the aligner pushes them back to meet the blade.

A rest is an area on the base that has the same dimension with the tracer bearing of the arm. It is used to rest the arm when the arm is not needed. The user places the arm on this device so that the tracer bearing hugs the rest. This way, the arm is out of the way of the “copying field” and the tracer sheets can copy the edge of the blade.

A locking bar that runs from one end of the box to the opposite, covering the tracer sheets. It is used to lock the tracer sheets after they have copied the shape of the edge of the blade. The user “freezes” the copy of the edge of the blade by tightening the two screws that support the bar.

An anchor is a box that is placed in both sides of the base. It is used to support the screw of the bar and the bracket for the rubber band. There are two “anchors” in both sides of the base.

A bracket is a device that accepts and holds the rubber band. There are two brackets in both sides of the base. The bracket holds the rubber band in front of the tracer sheets. The band is stretched between the two brackets in both sides of the base.

A “rubber band” (elastic band) is an elastic band that covers the front side of the tracer sheets and it is stretched. It is used to push the tracer sheets back to the edge of the blade thus taking its copy. It is also used to smooth the way of the rollers, in case some of the sheets are protruding in the rollers' course. The rubber band is hold stretched by the two brackets on each side of the box.

A “height gauge” is two rods that support the height gauge box and have facing small indentations. It is used to move the knife up and down in the vertical plane.

A “height gauge box” is a box that goes up and down on the height gauge. It has a dial and the corresponding teeth that match the indentation in the height gauge rods, the box moves in the vertical level precisely. This way the user can place the knife in the desired height.

An “angle setter” is a tube that contains a rod. The rod moves precisely in and out of the tube with the help of a dial. The user sets the proper angle for the sharpening of the blade by moving the rod in and out. The rod has indentations so that its course is determined by the user. The user uses the dial to move the rod in and out of the tube. By doing so, the knife moves closer or farther from the center of the grinding medium, meaning smaller or bigger angles. The closer the knife to the grinding disk center, the smaller the angle.

A “blade holder pivoting angle setter” is a protractor that determines the angle of the blade holder to the grinding medium. The blade holder pivoting angle setter determines the force with which the knife touches the grinding medium. The angle setter is located in the height gauge. The more the user pushes the knife to the grinding disk, the bigger the force the knife exerts to the disk (for duller knives). The user does so with the height gauge dial, which moves the knife up and down, thus pushing more or less the knife to the grinding medium.

A “protractor needle” is a needle that is based on the blade holder. This needle indicates the angle of the blade holder to the grinding medium. The user determines the force with which the blade touches the grinding medium by moving the height gauge box, thus the blade. By doing so, the user can precisely dial the proper force of the blade to the grinding medium (dull or not so dull knives).

A “blade holder pivoting axis and springs” is two rods that run through the blade holder and the blade holder pivots around them by turning the dials on each rod and a pair of springs that hold the blade holder in the horizontal plane. The springs are used to turn the blade back to the horizontal plane after it is sharpened. This way, the knife is always under tension until it is properly sharpened. When the knife is in the horizontal plane, this indicates that the knife is properly sharpened. The horizontal plane is marked by the level on top of the blade holder.

A level with a bubble marks the horizontal plane. The user brings the knife (according to its weight) with the two pivoting axis small dials to the horizontal plane. When the bubble shows “0” he knows the knife is horizontal.

A “blade holder and its screw(s)” is a box with a slot where the knife is placed and a screw (or two) to lock the knife in the desired place. It also supports the level. The user places the knife in the blade holder and locks it down with the screw(s).

The “arm” is a tube and a rod that moves in and out of the tube. The rod is spring loaded with a spring that is supported on the tube and on its other end grabs the rod and offers tension to it. The user places the arm in front of the sheets to start the sharpening procedure. With the help of the spring, the user is reassured that the arm (thus the motor and the grinding medium) is also facing the sheets under tension, since the arm is always pulled back towards the sheets. It also contains the motor, the bearings (path and curvature) and the handle.

An “arm pivoting bearing” is a bearing that holds the vertical part of the arm's tube. The user can turn the arm right and left precisely. This way, he can place it in front of the sheets for sharpening the blade or in the “rest” to move it out of the way of the “copying field”.

A set of three bearings is provided. The two upper bearings are called “curvature bearings” and the lower is called “path bearing”. The path bearing is guiding the arm (thus the motor and the grinding medium) right and left on the horizontal plane and the curvature bearings are guiding the motor (thus the grinding medium) on the tangent line that each blade curve dictates. The path bearing reassures the user that the grinding disk will always stay in touch with the blade (hence path bearing) and the curvature bearings reassure the user that the grinding disk will always face the blade in the tangent line that its curvature dictates (hence curvature bearings).

A “motor” rotates the grinding medium that sharpens the blade.

A “grinding medium with the shield” sharpens and polishes the blade. The shield protects the user from the spinning disks and the debris of the sharpening procedure. It contains one, two or three grinding disks of grinding medium that do the sharpening and polishing of the blade. It can be made out of stone, diamond, paper, or leather.

An “antenna” is a thin rod that protrudes from the shield of the grinding medium and marks the center of the disk. The antenna marks the “0” angle of the grinding disks. When the knife touches the antenna, the user knows that it is in the zero, meaning totally horizontal.

A “ball” is mounted on the arm. It is the actual handle of the arm. The user moves the arm using this ball. A “path bearing frame” is a vertical piece of material that extends from the arm to the base. With its level bottom, it holds the arm in the horizontal plane at all times during sharpening and it also supports the path bearing with its frame.

The “tracer sheets”, also known as the material that is capable of receiving an impression, are thin sheets or rods (or else) placed one next to another forming a wall. They are responsible for the copying of the shape of the blade. They do so by moving right and left on the horizontal plane and are based on the base of the device. After they touch the blade, they form a path on which the whole sharpening process is based on.

The “base” is a box that supports all the parts of the sharpening procedure. It supports the tracer sheets, the arm, the height gauge and the anchors with the bar, along with the rubber band. The “cable” is an electrical cable. It powers the motor.

In operation, the guide and carriage direct the movement of the abrasive surface along the contour of the blade for a uniform sharpening of the edge thereof as further defined in the following steps. First, the user places the blade of the knife in the blade holder and secures it in place using a fastening member, such as a screw. The user brings the blade to the horizontal plane, based upon its weight, which is measured by a dial on the blade holder. Second, with a stretcher device or manually, the user pulls one or more tracer sheets attached to the base or other materials that can receive an impression towards the carriage and guide and away from the blade holder, so that there is sufficient space for the blade to define a contour within the tracer sheets. Third, the user lowers the blade towards the tracer sheets until the blade holder engages the sheets. Fourth, the stretcher device is released by the user and the sheets copy the shape of the blade contour. Fifth, an aligner resets any sheet into its original position if it does not engage the blade. Sixth, the user locks the tracer sheets in position with a bar member attached to the base using locking members, such as screws. Seventh, the user vertically moves the blade away from the tracer sheets using a height gauge.

Eighth, the user rotates the arm or guide in front of the tracer sheets. Ninth, the user lowers the blade until the blade edge contacts an antenna member positioned on the carriage above the grinding medium or abrasive surface. At this point, the blade edge would be sharpened at 0 degrees. Tenth, an angle setter attached to the blade holder telescopically moves the blade holder away from the grinding medium to a desired sharpening angle for the blade. The further away from the grinding medium the blade moves, the larger the angle of sharpening. Likewise, the closer the blade is to the grinding medium, the smaller the angle of sharpening. Note, the blade is not touching the grinding medium at this point. Eleventh, the user lowers the blade further until it contacts or engages the grinding medium. The user continues to lower the knife until it meets the desired force or pressure of the blade onto the grinding medium. The amount of force or pressure which is applied can be measured by a protracter positioned on the blade holder. The amount of force or pressure will determined an amount of material to be removed, or depth of cut, from the blade during the sharpening of the blade. Twelfth, the user starts sharpening the blade by turning the motor on and sharpens the lower side or first side of the blade. The edge of the blade is sharpened by tracking the carriage along the tracer sheets of the base. By rolling the carriage along the sheets of the base, the blade is sharpened along a defined path similar to the contour of the blade. After a couple of passes of the grinding medium along the blade contour, the lower side of the blade is sharpened. Next, the user then disengages the blade form the sharpening medium by turning the dials on the height gauge and the angle setter correspondingly. Thirteenth, the user lowers the knife to a lower side of the grinding medium to sharpen the upper side of the knife, changes the polarity of the sharpening device, and follows the same process for upper side of the blade.

Referring now to FIG. 11-13, the sketch indicates how the sharpening angles work. The more the blade moves to the top of the disk, the smaller the angle it gets. The more it gets away from the top (antenna) the bigger the angles they get.

Referring now to FIGS. 14-16, the path bearing is responsible for the moving of the arm right and left on the horizontal plane, in and out of the blade's path, to always stay in touch with it. The curvature bearings are responsible for always keeping the grinding medium flash (in the tangent line) to the blade, by rotating the disk according to the contour of the blade.

It would be appreciated by those skilled in the art that various changes and modifications can be made to the illustrated embodiments without departing from the spirit of the present invention. All such modifications and changes are intended to be covered by the appended claims and the present invention. 

1. A blade sharpening device, comprising: a base, said base includes a material that receives an impression of a blade defining a blade contour; a blade holder attached to the base for securing the blade while being sharpened; a guide rotatably movable relative to the base; a carriage containing a means for interacting with the material of the guide to define a sharpening path substantially aligning with the blade contour, said carriage having an abrasive surface for sharpening the blade; whereby said guide and carriage direct the movement of the abrasive surface along the contour of the blade for a uniform sharpening of the edge thereof.
 2. The blade sharpening device of claim 1, further comprising: means for sharpening along a tangent line of the blade relative to the abrasive surface.
 3. The blade sharpening device of claim 1, further comprising: means for adjusting degree of material removed from a blade.
 4. The blade sharpening device of claim 1, further comprising: means for adjusting angle at which blade is sharpened. 